Inked Inc
by FlubFlub
Summary: "I don't care what you do man, but there's no way I'm getting a tat there." Jasper says. A tattoo and a chance meeting at Inked Inc. leads to a night of laughs, and... love? Now a two-shot.
1. Inked

**Inked Inc.**

**Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight and all its affiliates. I own this story plot though. That counts for something, right?**

***EDIT- September 12, 2012... This is a revised first chapter; everything is the same except for some grammer changes and stuff.**

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><p>The buzzing of the tattoo gun grew louder as we got further into the shop. I swear I can hear Jasper's heart beating from all the way over here. <em>Serves him right<em>,_ nobody drinks Emmett under the table_.

The shitty little tattoo shop is a few blocks away from Moonlight club, where the bet was initially made. Jasper's fucking stupid for thinking he could out-drink a monster of a football player. The bet was; whoever drank the most without puking all over wins, and the loser has to get a tattoo of the winner's choice.

"Dude, is this place even fucking certified?" Jasper asks nervously. Hell, I don't blame him. The wallpaper and paint on the walls inside is chipping off, and the outside is run-down. Kind of looks like a haunted house.

Despite the shitty appearance, there are at least fifteen people on the maroon colored couches waiting to get inked. Jasper literally falls backwards onto the nearest chair. I'm slightly worried for my brother; he looks a little green, like he's going to puke. I realize how close I am to him and quickly remove myself from the splash zone.

I sit myself on the couch nearest the front desk next to a chick who's way past her prime. She's at least fifty, but looks more like seventy and colored head to toe. Literally colored. She has everything from a skull, to a naked woman on a motorcycle, to Ashton Kutcher's face. Her teeth are rotted and her breath smells like rotten fish, and I scrunch my nose up in disgust.

"See somethin ya' like hun?" she asks me. _Eeew, no lady, just…no._ I feel a light touch on my thigh and immediately jump out of my seat and go to stand beside Emmett. He's really tall with the shape of a linebacker, and I use this to my advantage by using him as a human shield.

"What the hell man? Go find someone else to get all touchy feely with." He teases and steps away from me.

"Stay put Emmett!" I whisper and move behind him again. "See that lady over there?" I ask and point to the creepy cougar.

"Ed, man I don't think-" he starts, but I'm too freaked out to listen.

"She touched me! Inapropritetely! She was going to make me her bitch in a damn tattoo parlor! What the fuck is wrong with people today?" I rant.

"Edward, she's not actually-"

"Mr. Brower, Jessica's ready for you." The blonde chick at the desk calls to no one in particular. I'm curious as to whom Mr. Brower is, but as soon as I know I want to forget.

Mrs. Creepy cougar turns out is actually Mr. Brower. As she, oops, _he_ makes his way over to the back room; he looks over his shoulder and winks. I can't help myself. Between the booze, the shitty parlor, and attempted rape by a man, I can no longer hold in the contents of my stomach.

I find the nearest potted plant and retch inside the pot. Someone comes up next to me, and starts to join in. _What the fuck? Find your own cactus!_

The man next to me sees me looking at him in disgust and smiles. _Oh god! I don't need to see what just came up!_

"I is ssssoorry sir." He slurs, and I smell the alcohol on his breath, "Puke makes me up-chuck. Hehe up-chuck." He starts giggling, yes _giggling_, and is soon laughing so hard he has tears streaming down his face.

Laughing must have upset his stomach because soon he's 'up-chucking' again. This time he didn't make it to the cactus and it hit my shoe.

"Dude I am _so_ done!" I yell to Em and Jazz as I race for the door. "I'll wait outside!" As I pass by Jasper, he looks at me with pleading eyes and I grab him by the color of his shirt and drag him out.

_No way am I letting my little brother get a disease from this place._

Emmett follows us out and starts cracking up. "You should have seen your faces!" He manages to get out before erupting in another fit of laughter.

"You think this is fucking funny?" I spit out at him. "Did you not just see what happened in there? I almost got felt up by a he-she and puked on by a drunk! I'm failing to see the humor in this situation!"

"I don't care what you do man, but there's no way I'm getting a tat there." Jasper says. _At least he's getting back some color._ "That's not cool."

"You really think I'm _that_ shitty of a friend that I would risk something like that over a stupid bet? No way man. That was purely fun. Now it's down to crunch time, and we're going to my personal favorite place. Completely sterile, no scum. No puke." He adds warily eyeing my shoes nervously. I know he's worried about me tracking it into his Jeep. _That's what he gets. Asshole._

Twenty minutes later, we pull into the parking lot to Inked Inc. on the upper class side of Seattle. _This is more like it. _The outside looks like every other building in this neighborhood, up kept and expensive. I jump down from Emmett's monstrous transportation device and hobble in my socks over to the back where Emmett tied my Vans to the trailer hitch on his Jeep. He said he didn't want me to 'spoil the interior' with my 'dirty shoes.' Like the candy wrappers and soda cans strewn in the backseat don't ruin it. _Whatever._

"You're really making me do this?" Jasper asks as he stares up at the parlor.

"Yes, yes I am." Emmett replies and smacks Jasper on the back with a smile. "Let's go bitches." With that, he walks off and expects us to follow. Too bad I don't know how to hot-wire a car. I could steal his Jeep and leave him stranded here. That would piss him off. Literally, he would come out to find his Jeep gone and would piss himself.

The inside of the parlor matches the outside in the sense that one couch alone probably cost more than my whole apartment. There are at least thirty people waiting around, and I'm happy to report that not one of them tried to grab my junk as I passed by.

"Dude, you know how long were going to have to wait here? Just make an appointment and we'll come back later!" Jasper whispers.

"What? And give you the chance to flee the country? Not likely. Don't worry m'boy, waiting won't be an issue." He says confidently, relishing in Jasper's discomfort. "Bellaaaa! Get yo ass out here!" He yells. Every head in the place turns to stare at Emmett, and I try to sink back into the wall so as not to be noticed. "Beeelllllaaaaaa!" He continues.

"Shut the fuck up!" I whisper-yell and smack him on the head.

"Relax man, its okay. Belllllaaaa!" He bellows. Out of the corner of my eye, I see two hulk-like rent a cop guys coming our way and turn around to yell at Emmett to shut up again.

"What the fuck is going on out here?" A sweet voice yells angrily. Her voice alone is like music to my ears and my head whips back and forth trying to find the owner. I'm slightly afraid to see what she looks like, because if the last place was any indication, people who hung out at tattoo places are a bit shady.

She finally turns the corner, coming into view, and I'm taken aback by her beauty. Her silky brown hair reaches her mid-back; all I want to do is run my fingers through it. Her brown eyes look like windows to her soul, and I could easily get lost in them. Her blue sundress shows off her hour-glass figure and her tits are practically spilling out of the top. Normally it would look really slutty, but she manages to make it look… _innocent._ She has a small blue stud on her nose and I can see a hint of a tattoo behind her ear.

Her squeal brings me back to the present and I'm surprised to see her running straight for me. _Fuck yes! The Cullen charm strikes again._ I widen my stance so she won't knock me over when she jumps into my arms. I smile and wait for her to reach me, but she turns at the last second. I'm confused until I see her jump into Emmett's open arms and smiling face. I can feel the jealousy bubbling up inside me. _Mine_.

She giggles as he spins her around and puts her down after a few turns. Her expression suddenly grows dark and she smacks Emmett's arm. I can't help but think she looks like and angry kitten. She must have a strong arm, because Emmett actually whimpers and rubs the spot.

"Why haven't I heard from you? The only time I see you anymore is when you need work done!" her sweet voice yells angrily at him. It finally sinks in what she said, and I see red. He must have slept with her and left her in the morning.

I suddenly want to kick hiss, best friend or not.

"My own brother and I barely ever see you! You live a block away from me for gods sakes!" _Wait, brother?_

"Bells, I'm sorry okay? You now I have been a bit busy with the team and all." He states pointing to his Seattle Sea-Hawks sweatshirt he never takes off. That thing seriously smells like feet, and he refuses to wash it. He says it'll "was out the good luck."

_Dick. He makes the rest of us suffer just because of his stupid superstitions._

"You're too busy knitting sweatshirts for the team to call your own sister?" she asks, with her hands on her hips. _I've seen this stance before. Trust me you never win._

Emmett starts to respond, but my beautiful girl cuts him off and turns to me and Jasper. "Hi, I'm Isabella, this oaf's sister. Call me Bella though. Call me Isabella and I'll cut your balls off, kay?" She says with a sickening sweet smile.

Jasper introduces himself, taking her hand and placing a light kiss on her delicate hand causing her to blush. I want to rip my brother's head off for 1. Kissing **my** girl, and 2. Giving me a hard introduction to top, I mean really what the hell? How am I supposed to impress her now?

She turns to me and I nearly jizz in my pants. That would be a great way to introduce myself. _Hey I'm Edward, and you're so hot you made me ejaculate prematurely. Congratulations!_

She clears her throat and I realize I had been staring. "I'm Edward, it's nice to meet you." I say and give her my famous 'panty dropping smile.'

She smiles back and shakes her head, confusing the shit out of me. "So, what are you having done this time, Emmy?" she asks Emmett as she snaps on a pair of rubber gloves. _Holy shit! She's the one that actually does the tattooing? I might have to get one done myself._

"Actually Bellsie, Jazz here's getting' his first. I guess you could say he's popping his proverbial tat cherry."

"Well, I'm glad to be the one to do it." Bella whispers to Jazz as she passes by, all the while smirking at me. She totally knows she's pissing me off. I've never wanted to be an only child as bad as I do right now.

"Follow me boys." Bella calls over her shoulder. I try not to stare at her ass as she sashays in front of me, I really do. I feel a sharp slap on my back, and I whip around to face a steaming Emmett.

"That's my sister, you sick fuck!" he hisses.

When we catch up to Bella, she already has Jazz sitting in the chair surrounded by a bunch of pointy things. A bead of sweat drips down his forehead as the reality of the situation dawns on him. He's going to let his man-child of a best friend pick out a design to permanently grace his skin. If it wasn't so damn funny I would actually feel bad for him.

Jasper's eyes light up when a woman steps into the back room with us. She's about a foot shorter than me with short spiky black hair. Her whole left arm is tatted with hundreds of designs and colors, and I realize how much of an art tattooing really is.

I curiously look back to Bella and notice that, despite being a tattoo artist, I can only see two tats. She sees me staring and raises an eyebrow in question. "I was just noticing your lack of tattoos, Bella." I say drawing out her name.

She smirks and looks at me innocently. "Just because you can't see any doesn't mean they're not there." I gulp audibly and she smiles wider. "Guys this is Alice, my best friend and best artist. Al, this is my brother Em and his friends Jasper and Edward." I love the way she says my name.

"Nice to meet you all." She replies sweetly in a high pitched voice, never removing her eyes from Jasper's. I can tell they're having a moment and feel slightly uncomfortable.

"Jasper here's a virgin." Bella tells Alice. "You up to it?"

"Jasper, I would be happy to pop your tat cherry if you'd like." Alice asks.

"O-o—okay." Jasper stammers out. _Since when has a _girl_ turned my brother into a blubbering idiot?_

Alice smiles and grabs a pair of gloves from under Jazz's chair and snaps them on. I never get why people do that. Why can't they just pull them on carefully? No, they have to stretch them back and let go so it makes that fucking noise. The sound of her gloves makes Jasper jump and Alice places a hand on his arm to soothe him.

"Relax, I do this all the time. It doesn't hurt." Alice soothes.

"Much." Emmett adds. Bella smacks his head and hands Jasper a book of designs.

"Pick whatever. If you want to alter it, we can do that. You can pick colors, fonts, sizes, anything really. Just remember, it's permanent and hurts like hell to get lasered off."

"I'll take that, thank you very much." Emmett says and snatches it out of Jasper's hands. He's enjoying this way too much.

As Emmett flips through the book, Alice grabs a bunch of things off the counter behind the chair Jazz is sitting in. Bella walks out to the front of the parlor and comes back a minute later with a stack of papers and a pen.

"Here you go, just sign here." She says and hands the papers to Jazz.

"What are they?" He asks.

"Oh you know, the usual shit. Just saying that you consent to the tattoo and aren't going to sue us if something goes wrong."

"Stuff… goes wrong?" he asks with a tremor in his voice.

"Huh? Oh um, no not normally." She replies unconcerned and walks over to the counter. She hops up, and her dress pulls back a bit showing more of her flawless skin.

I can't resist any longer. I have to touch her and see if she's as soft as she looks. I check to make sure Emmett isn't paying attention and make my way over to her. She watches me and smiles as I approach her. As I get closer, I realize that I had initially missed her nose piercing. It looks so natural there that it doesn't stand out.

"You getting' one too?"

"Um no, I don't think so." I reply sarcastically. She just shrugs her shoulder and smirks at me.

"You a pussy or what?" my dick unfortunately stands to salute her at the word 'pussy' and I have to face the counter to hide it. _Whoever invented skinny jeans for guys has obviously never experienced a hard-on. There's no way to hide it in these damn things!_

"Naw, just not my thing really." I say and give her a crooked smile.

"Oh, but it's your friend's thing?" she asks sarcastically, motioning to Jasper who is breathing in and out of a paper bag.

"Brother, actually." I clarify, "He deserves it though. He made a bet; he needs to follow through with it."

"Can I tell you a secret?" she whispers and looks at me through her long eyelashes. "Will you promise not to tell?" she asks innocently. I would do just about anything for her, I think. Instead of saying this and scaring her away, I just nod my head.

She smiles and moves closer and I think she's going to kiss me, but at the last second she changes direction and brings her lips right up to my ear. She smells so good and I feel like I'm slowly losing my mind

"It's not real." She whispers.

"What?" I ask stupidly, too distracted by her closeness to actually think.

"The tattoo, it isn't real. It feels like a real one, but it won't last forever. It was Emmett's idea. He called me before you got here told me all about the bet and thought it would be funny to fuck with him." **(A/N I know of no such tattoo that is injected and isn't permanent, but since this story is fiction, anything can happen…)**

I let this sink in for a bit and start laughing. _I wonder when he made that call_. "Does Alicia know?"

"You mean Alice? Ya of course she does. She's the one doing the tattooing, I had to tell her."

Her smile's so beautiful. I want to tell her she's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, but I don't want to sound creepy. The last thing I want her to do is get a restraining order against me.

I realize that she never backed away from me, and our noses are almost touching. _If I move my face slightly, I'll be kissing her. _I think. She's staring into my eyes, almost as if she's searching for something. I wonder what she sees, if she knows how much I want her.

_Fuck it, I'm doing it!_ I think as I turn my head and lean closer. I can feel her cool breath on my lips. _I want to taste them._

"Found it!" Emmett screeches, causing me to jump and smack my head into Bella's. She lets out a groan and jumps down off the counter without looking back. _What the fuck just happened?_

"It's perfect Jazz. You're going to love it!" Emmett yells, obviously excited by the idea of scaring the shit out of his best friend.

Bella grabs the book and he shows her which design he picked out. She bites her lip and nods wearing Cheshire cat smile. "It's totally you Jazz, to be honest it could be worse." she says with mock-sincerity. I doubt Jazz even hears her though. His eyes are closed and he's clutching the brown-bag to his mouth and breathing slowly, like it'll get him out of this hell-hole.

I jump off the counter and make my way over to the book. I'm curious as to what Em has picked out. Bella must see me coming because she slams it shut and winks at me. _Bitch._

She throws the book haphazardly on the counter and motions for Alice to follow her. Bella whispers in her ear, no doubt telling her which tattoo to put on him. Alice's grin slowly grows into a full smirk and she rolls her eyes.

"Okay Jazz, let's do this." Alice says and sits down on a swiveling chair next to the one Jasper is on. "What color Em?" she asks as she pulls out the gun. Jaspers face pales even further and I'm slightly worried he'll pass out.

"Just like the picture." Bella laughs and grabs the book again and shows the picture to Alice. "I want it right above his ass too so everyone sees it when he takes his shirt off." Emmett adds.

"No, no way man." Jasper protests, "I'm so fucking done with this!" He sits up and starts to stand, but he stops in his tracks when he sees Alice's face. Her eyes are glassy and she's looking at the ground. _What a little faker!_ Her shoulders slump and she sniffles.

Jasper huffs and sits back down. He takes a deep breath and reaches out for Alice's hand. "Just don't make it too… flashy, okay?" he says reluctantly. Alice jumps up and hugs Jazz, and I start to wonder when he became so pussy-whipped.

"Edward," Bella's voice calls to me. I immediately jump up and practically run over to her. _Psh talk about being pussy-whipped._ "Can you take this up to Gina at the front desk please?" she asks, holding up the papers Jasper signed earlier.

I'd do anything for you beautiful. "Sure."

The front desk is right by the entrance door. The girl behind it already annoys me by the way she's smacking her double-bubble bubblegum. _She looks like a fucking cow eating grass._ I approach the desk and clear my throat so she'll put down her phone.

Her fingers pause above her screen on her IPhone and she looks up at me with raised eyebrows. She blatantly looks me up and down and her eyes pause on my package. _Shit, I still a Bella induced hard-on._ I quickly place the papers in front of my crotch and clear my throat again. Her eyes shoot up to mine and she gives me a seductive smile. Yesterday, I would have totally tapped that. Today, my dick is loyal to only Bella. _I hope she's not married._

"Here." I say shortly and hand her the papers. She takes them and adds them to a pile that's at least a foot tall.

"Umm, Edward? I think we need some help back here." My angel calls to me. "Gina! What the fuck is that! What the fuck do I pay you for if all you do is sit on your ass and text all fucking day! Either do your fucking job, or get the fuck out!" Shit, I've never been so turned on by the word fuck in my life. She takes a deep breath and addresses me calmly again. "Your brother's crying."

I roll my eyes and follow her to the back room and sure enough, Jasper's lying on his stomach with no shirt crying like a baby. Emmett's in the corner laughing his ass off and Alice is slowly petting his head looking panicked.

"All I did was clean the spot." She admits.

_Cue internal face-palm._"Jasper, snap the fuck out of it! You acting like a baby." I tell him.

"I don't wanna doooo it!" He whines.

"Please Jasper, please let me do it." Alice begs and gives him a pouty face. Jasper shakes his head and hides his face in the chair. _Jesus, you'd think she was trying to cut off his dick._ Alice rolls her eyes and leans in really close to his ear and whispers something, to quiet for me to hear. He pulls his head up and stares at her, his eyes wide as saucers. She just nods once. He debates something for a minute before he takes a breath and lies down.

"Do it." He demands confidently. _What the hell did she say?_

She puts the gun to his skin and the buzzing can hardly be heard over Jazz's screaming.

An hour and a half later, I finally get my hearing back. We're all crowded around Jasper waiting for Alice to uncover her masterpiece. Jasper keeps craning his neck but no matter which way he turns, he can't see his lower back.

"Ready?" Alice asks as she starts lifting the edge of the cloth.

"Do it, do it, do it!" Emmett chants. _So mature._

"Tada!" she yells as she whips off the whole thing. _Ho-ly SHIT!_

"What is it?" Jasper asks reluctantly. My mind comes up blank. There directly above his crack are two curly pink cursive words. _Barbie Girl._ Fuck, he's gonna be pissed. At least it isn't permanent.

Emmett's the first one to laugh, followed by Bella, and Alice shortly after. I'm still in shock that Emmett would do this. It's brilliant actually; Jasper has always hated everything trademarked by Mattel.

"What?" Jasper asks, panicking. Alice helps him up and drags him to the full length mirror. His eyes are closed, and when he opens them I swear he's going to break the windows with his scream.

Emmett's actually on his knees pounding the ground with his fists with tears streaming down his face he's laughing so hard. I wonder if he's going to tell him it's fake.

"I fucking hate you! What the fuck man? I thought we were friends!" Jasper yells at Emmett. He looks so stupid when he's angry, and I can't help but laugh too. "And you! My own fucking brother!"

"Relax Jasper. You have to trust me. You will look back on this one day and laugh. Please, just trust me!" Alice begs. _Again with the damn pouty face._

He nods solemnly and she hugs him tightly, careful to avoid his tat. Despite my disbelief that Jazz has finally found someone to tame him, in a tattoo parlor of all places, I look away to give them some privacy.

Emmett has the design book again and is flipping through it, pausing every once in a while to hold it up to his arm.

I feel a light hand on my arm and look over into Bella's eyes. "You next?" she teases.

"Hell no!" I say as I lean closer to her. She stands on her toes and brings an arm up around my neck. I grab her waist and stare into her lust clouded eyes.

"Kiss me." She whispers against my lips.

I debate on how to start. Should I lean down slow and give her a passionate kiss, or is that too over the top? Or I could give her chaste kiss, with promise of things to come. Or, I could maul her and claim her as mine in front of the thirty people out in the waiting room.

My dick likes option three best, but my head tells me to go for option two and see what happens. The head farthest north, that is.

I lean down and press my lips softly against hers. She responds with equal pressure and brings her other arm up around my neck. I bring her closer and slowly pull away until my lips barely brush hers. She smiles and blushes and I don't think I've ever seen anything more beautiful in my life. I rest my forehead on hers and give one last brush against her lips before backing away until only our hands are connected.

Alice and Jasper have disappeared, and Emmett is still engulfed in his design book. I breathe a sigh of relief at the last one. Emmett's my friend and all, but you don't make out with your buddies little sister. It's in the Man Code; Bro's before Hoe's. Not that I'm saying Bella's a hoe, it's just an expression.

_Although if she was a hoe, I bet she'd let me fuck her on the tattooing chair._ Bad Edward.

"You Okay?" Bella asks as she elbows my side.

"Yup." _Just thinking about you and me doing the horizontal tango._

She looks at me oddly for a minute before disappearing around the corner to the front room.

"Whadya think about this Edweird?" Emmett asks and holds up a design of a snake chomping down on a rat's ass. _He knows I hate that fucking name!_

"It's fucking disgusting man." I tell him and shake my head. Bella returns a few minutes later linking arms with some tall Indian guy. I see red and immediately stand taller, ready to fight for my girl. I never would have pegged Bella for someone like that.

She pulls him over to Jasper's now unoccupied chair and tells him to sit. He complies and pulls off his shirt revealing a toned body with hundreds of tattoos. _Holy shit, this guy has a fucking ten pack._

I attempt to block out Bella and Dickface by talking to Emmett, but he's too entranced by Dickface's chest. _Ew is he fucking drooling?_

"Hey man! I'm Emmett." He says and runs off to admire Dickface's tattoos. _So much for the Man Code. Section three, Bro's before… other Dickheads._

I see Bella alone at the counter grabbing some rubber gloves and storm over to her. _How dare she steal my heart and then rip it out and stomp on it. The fucking nerve!_

"Um, excuse me?" Bella asks with her hands on her hips.

_Oh shit, did I say that out loud?_

"Uh, yeah you did."

_Fuck! Brain, meet filter._ "Um, I uh- didn't mean that." I stutter.

"What? The part about me stealing your heart or the part about me ripping it out and stomping on it? You make me sound like such a nice woman." She adds sarcastically.

"Uh, both?" It comes out sounding like a question.

"So I don't have your heart? You feel nothing towards me? Do you go around every day, smooching on random chicks? Huh? Answer me!"

"Um," I pull on my hair, "Well of course I feel something, and uh no, I don't kiss chicks all the time. I guess you can have my heart if you want it."

"Gee, you make it sound like such a prize." She smirks and snaps her gloves. _Dammit! I hate that fucking noise!_

"And you make yourself sound like such a fucking victim! Like you didn't just kiss me and then run to get your boyfriend!" I whisper yell at her.

Her brow furrows in confusion, and then she laughs. _Fucking laughs!_

"It's not funny!" I hiss.

She grabs my hand and pulls me over to Dickface. "Jake, this is Edward. Edward, this is Jake, our very first and very loyal customer. And this is his first tattoo." She says and points to his forearm. _Why the fuck do I care?_ "It's of Leah. His _Wife_."

_His- _oh. _His wife_. He's married, and it's no to Bella. Oh. Well don't I feel like a dick. Bella snorts at the look on my face and shakes her head.

"So, we're finishing up the tribal band today, and you wanted another name next to Leah's?" she asks Dick- I mean Jake.

"Yup. Just had our first little girl, Nessie. Want it right there in the same font as Leah's." he says in a slight accent. I wonder why he's here if his wife just had a child, but he looks like he could kick my ass so I refrain from asking.

Bella starts up the gun after she cleans the spot she'll be inking and adds more designs to the tribal band on his left arm. It's very intricate, and she sticks the end of her tongue out and furrows her brows in concentration as she looks back and forth between the drawing and Jake's arm.

_Fuck she's adorable._ I realize too late that staring at her is turning me on, and I'm pitching a tent in my skinny jeans again. _Hang on buddy, I'll take care of ya' soon._

Forty minutes later, _Jake's_ tattoo is done, and he leaves the parlor. Now if Emmett would fucking leave already, I could be alone with Bella.

"Hey guys." Jasper smirks as he appears back in the room with Alice. He has bright red lipstick smeared all over his cheek, and his clothes are wrinkled. Alice on the other hand, is wearing a backwards shirt with a big tear in the side. Her hair looks like a haystack and her makeup is smudged everywhere. _I totally know what you just did._

They're like poster children for fucking in a public place.

"You look like you took a ride strapped to the top of a fucking air-plane dude!" Emmett laughs at him.

"I took a ride all right." Jasper snorts. _Haha, sex humor._

Jasper's comment flies right over Emmett's head and he runs off to Bella. "Belllllaa!" he shouts, "I wanna 'nother tattoo!"

"No fucking way Emmett, I've been working since six. I don't have time to scratch my ass let alone give you _another_ tat."

"But Bella," he whines

"My partner Rose will be here in ten minutes. If you can wait that long, she'll do it for you." Bella tells him as she pulls off her gloves and grabs a black purse from under the counter.

"You know I don't trust anyone but you near the boys," he says and gestures to his crotch.

"What the fuck? You have your _sister_ tattoo your balls?" Jasper asks, disgusted. If I'm being honest, it is pretty fucked up. I'd never let my sister anywhere near my man-gems. _If I had a sister, that is._

"You think I want some she-man sticking a needle where the sun don't shine? Nuh-uh, no thank you."

"Yeah, and I'm fucking scarred for life. Relax, Em. Rose is a great artist, and she's pretty hot."

"Yeah, if I had to go Lezbo for someone, Rose'd be my second choice." Alice pipes in.

"Who'd be your first?" I ask.

"Bells of course!" she tells me, as if it's the most obvious answer in the world. She grabs her purse and kisses Bella on the cheek. "C'mon babe." She calls over her shoulder to Jazz.

"Alright, I'll be there in a sec." Jasper calls back. _What the fuck? One romp in the sack and he lets her call him Babe?_ "We're going to uh… Well, you know man. Call you later, much later." He wiggles his eyebrows to Em and I and leaves hand in hand with Alice. _What happened to Bro's before Ho's? Does nobody honor the Man Code anymore?_

"What up, bitch?" a loud woman's voice yells as she comes around the corner. "Oh, and bitchetts." She adds when she sees us. "Who's your friends Bella?" She asks, giving Emmett the eye.

"That's my brother Emmett and his friend Edward. Hey, I'm leaving for the nigh, lock up on your way out, ya?"

"You got it babe," She says and slaps Bella's ass. _Bitch, that's my ass._ I think. I deduce that this must be Rose, the other tattoo artist. I can tell by the way Emmett's staring at her tits that he will definitely be getting another tat near his crotch. She's fairly tall with platinum blonde hair and striking blue eyes. Her sundress reaches mid-thigh and shows off her body.

"Alright, I'm going." Bella announces. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do." She narrows her eyes at Rose.

"That leaves everything open." She retorts and rolls her eyes. _So Bella's a naughty girl, me like._ Bella hugs Emmett goodbye and stares at me for a minute before taking my hand.

"It was so nice to meet you Edward." She drawls.

"Hey um, I'm kinda hungry too. I mean if you're going to get food, I might as well come with you." I stutter out. _Smooth x-lax._

"Hmm, are you sure you want to? You seem a bit hesitant."

"Huh? Oh, ya of course I want to!"

"Okay," she says and eyes me warily.

"Awkward." Rose teases form her perch on the counter.

"Shut up Rose." Bella says, and takes my hand. Her hand is so soft and small. I never want to let go. "So, where're we going?" she asks me as we head out the door and to the parking lot.

The parking lot is packed full, and I wonder which one is hers. _I hope she's not a Prius chick_.

"I don't know. What about that new Italian place, La Belle Italian?" I suggest.

She looks at me incredulously. "You know you need to make reservations like a month in advance, right? Unless you foresaw this day last month and made two reservations, I think that options out.

I just shrug. "It's all about who you know." She raises her eyebrows at me, and I wanna take a picture of her face for my phone home screen. She's so fucking cute. _Would that be creepy?_ "My grandma co-owns it." I explain.

"Oh," she hums in response, "Mr. special Ed." She teases and laughs. "You get it right?" she asks when I don't laugh. "Your name is ED-ward and you get special treatment because… never mind." _I don't get it._

She hits a button on her keys and light flash on the car she's pulled us up to. _Holy shit! How the fuck did she get my dream car?_

"What? Tatting pays well." She shrugs and hops into the driver's seat. I pick my jaw up off the floor and settle myself gently into the passenger's side. How she already has the newest model of the Aston Martin Vanquish V12 in stark black, I don't know, but I think I fucking love this chick.

"I take it you like?"

"I fucking love." _You._

Her hand is laying on the gearshift and I just can't help myself. I reach out and take her hand in mine. Out of the corner of my eye, I see her cheeks turn a light shade of pink and a small smile grace her perfect lips. I feel an unnamable pull towards her, like I can never get close enough. _I wonder if she feels it too._

Before I know it, we're pulling into _La Belle Italian_. The parking lot is packed and the line to get in is out the door. We're lucky enough to score a parking spot in the front right after someone pulls out. I caress the leather seat softly as I shut the door of the Vanquish.

"You're kinda weird, you know that?"

"Ya, but you love me." It slips out before I can stop it. _I can't believe I just dropped the 'l' bomb on a first date. Is this a date? What if she's just humoring me, and would rather I go die in a hole than have dinner with her? Holy shit, what if she doesn't like me? Then what will I do? _"I'll make her like me." I mutter to myself.

"What?"

"Nothing." _Note to self, stop internal ramblings._

We endure the angry protests and glares as we skip in front of the line. I don't see Grammy, but I recognize the waitress seating people.

"Angela!" I shout over the noise of unhappy line-dwellers.

"Oh hi Mr. Cullen!" she shouts back and tries to make her way through the line to us. "What can I do for you?" she asks, slightly out of breath. _Jeez, you would be too if you had to deal with all these fuckers._

"You got an empty table for two?" I ask and give her the 'Cullen pout.' "Oh, and call me Edward, please."

"Of course Edward, Mrs. Cullen always leaves tables open for family." She smiles. She really is a sweet girl. "Follow me."

She leads us to a table in the corner and hands us our menus. "Mike'll be right out to take your drink orders." She says and starts to walk away.

"Wait, I thought you were a waitress?" I ask.

"I was, but we're severely understaffed tonight." She rushes out. "Have a nice night Edward."

Our table is away from the front of the Restaurant, thankfully, so there isn't much noise. The room back here is candle lit, and decorated to be slightly romantic.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to seduce me Mr. Cullen," Bella states, never taking her eyes off her menu.

"Damn, you figured me out." I joke. "I seriously didn't mean it that way, if it makes you uh- uncomfortable."

She pauses a minute and unleashes her chocolate brown eyes to mine, "I don't mind." She says coyly.

"Hey, I'm mike, and I'll be your…" his words cut off and he eyes Bella up and down. "Uh- your um waiter." He finishes lamely. _Eyes off bud, she's mine._ "Can I get you something to drink?" he asks her, trying to sound seductive. _Watch it; I can have you fired with one little call._

"I'll have lemonade please. Pink if you have it." She tells him. "What about you Babe?"

My eyes widen at her casual use of such a personal name. Dickwads eyes flick to mine, and at least he has the decency to look embarrassed. He was obviously too busy checking out my girl to notice she does indeed have a date.

"Just a coke." I snap at him.

"I'll be right back," he blushes and scurries off with his proverbial tail between his legs.

"Douche bag," Bella mutters. I laugh at her choice of words, "Well, he is! It's true, if you squint your eyes and turn your head to the side a bit, he could totally be a life-sized douche."

I'm full on cracking up at her rant now, and earning Medusa-worthy glares from the fine people of Seattle.

"Here you go," Mike stammers as he puts down our drink and pulls out a pen and paper. "Are you ready to order?"

"Yep, you go first babe," I say to Bella as I squint my eyes and turn my head like she said to do. _Holy Fuck! Total douche bag on legs!_

Bella snorts her lemonade when she realizes what I'm doing.

"Um, sir? Are you- um are you alright?" Mike asks.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine." I say, righting my head and opening my eyes. I look over to Bella and she has her head in her hands, shaking with laughter.

"We'll have the Mushroom Ravioli. That okay?" I ask her calmly. She just nods her head and shakes her hand at Mike. He gives us a long look and quickly retreats into the kitchen. When he's gone, Bella snorts and lets out her laugh she had been suppressing. It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard. I join in, and soon the whole restaurant is staring at us.

"You were right," I tell her once my laughter dies down enough for me to talk. She has tears streaming down her face and every once in a while, she'll let out another snort.

"What is going on out here? Edward, is that you?"

"Grammy!" I shout and get up to give my grandmother a hug. My Grammy is the cutest old lady you'll ever find. She doesn't even reach my shoulders and has white hair. She looks a little like Betty White with bright green eyes.

"Eddie," she says excitedly and wraps her thin arms around my waist. "How are you sweetie?" _Grammy's the only one who can call me names like that. Well except Bella, but she doesn't know that._ "Who's this?" she asks as she sits beside Bella.

"Grammy this is my…" _My what? Girlfriend?_

"Bella." She finishes for me and holds out her hand. "Edward's Bella." _I like it._ Grammy pulls Bella in for a hug instead of taking her hand.

"It's so nice to meet you dear. It's about time you got a girlfriend." She scowls at me. "I want grandkids while I'm still alive and kickin' ya know." _Talk about awkward._

"Um Grammy, we're not quite that, um- close yet." I tell her quietly as Bella giggles softly.

"Oh, I love your tattoo!" Grammy squeals and touches Bella's shoulder. There's a beautiful black and white swan inked on her shoulder blade. "I have one right here see." Grammy tells her and pulls down her shirt. I didn't know Grammy was inked. I expect her to stop pulling, but eventually her whole chest is practically sticking out of her shirt. _My Eyes!_ I quickly turn away. _Oh look, Mike's back with our food._

He approaches our table and scowls at Grammy. "Excuse me _Ma'am,_" he mocks, "We have a strict rule that once food has been ordered, no other members can join a table," He sneers. _Bad move kid._

"Well excuuuuse me sir, but I would watch it if I were you. I happen to cut your paycheck." Grammy tells him smugly and stands up from the booth. Mike's face pales. "One more comment like that and I'll fire your ass boy." He quickly puts down our plates and rushes away. "Well, I'm needed at the front. It was so nice to meet you Bella! I hope I'll see you again soon!" she gushes and gives Bella a kiss on the cheek.

"Love you too Grammy!" I call sarcastically at her retreating form.

"Oh, Edward! I almost forgot. Love you kiddo! See you at your mother's birthday this weekend, yes?"

"Sure sure. Bye Gram."

"Your Grandma kicks ass!" Bella says as she scoops the Mushroom Ravioli into her mouth. "Mmm, this is really good."

"Yep, best thing on the menu." I say cockily. "Ya, well that's Grammy."

"You're so lucky! The only thing I remember about my Grandma is that she smelled like cat food and made Emmett and I sit at the table until we ate all of our peas." She says and makes a face of disgust.

"I take it you're not a fan?"

"Fuck no. those things are fucking disgusting!"

The rest of dinner passed smoothly and soon we were back in her Vanquish. _Not that I'm complaining about the car part, but I don't want to leave her just yet._

"So, I'll drop you off first?" she asks hesitantly, giving me a sidelong glance.

"Ya that sounds okay." I clear my throat, "You wanna drink when we get there?"

"I think that sounds fantastic." She smiles.

I give her directions to my place and five minutes later we're pulling into the gated parking lot of my apartment.

"Nice place."

"Thanks." I hate how it's awkward now. I hope she doesn't think I'm inviting her up to have sex. I mean don't get me wrong, that would be fucking amazing, but I'm interested in more than just a quick fuck. I've never been fond of the whole _wham-bam thank you ma'am_ thing. "You know we don't have to have sex, right?" I blurt out without thinking.

"Jeeze Edward, the thought had never even crossed my mind. What kind of a girl do you peg me for?" she asks and laughs at my guilty expression. "I'm just kidding. Let's just see what happens okay?"

I punch in my code that opens the gate to the building and grab Bella's hand. The doorman Brutus opens the door for us and greets us as we pass him. Brutus is a nice guy in his late sixties or early seventies. He doesn't talk much, but I know he has a wife and three grandkids. He's been working in this building ever since it was built ten years ago.

We get in the elevator and I punch in floor three while swinging our linked arms back and forth.

When we get to apartment 94, I slide my key in and open the door and motion Bella in with a sweeping motion of my hand.

"What service," she giggles.

"You want something?" I ask as I shut the door and turn on the lights, Bella gasps as she takes in the view. The focal point of my apartment is definitely the huge window that leads out to a balcony. The balcony overlooks the space needle and downtown Seattle. The view and the lights are breathtaking at night.

"This is amazing!"

"Thanks. It's definitely a perk of living here." I call out as I head to the kitchen and open the fridge. _Fuck! I'm outta booze._ "You wanna water, Coke, 7-up, Gatorade, or milk?" I ask. _Wonder how long this has been here?_ I think and sniff the milk carton. _Eww._ "Never mind, no milk."

She laughs and joins me by the fridge. "Hm, typical bachelor pad. I'll take a Coke thanks." She teases.

"I'm usually better stocked than this but Emmett was over last night, and you know how he eats."

"Yes, he's like a fucking Hoover!" she laughs out and pulls herself up on the counter.

I close the fridge and stand between her legs and hand her the soda. "Here you go m'lady."

"Why thank you good sir." She jokes. She sets it down beside her and smiles at me. She's looking at me oddly and I think I'm making her uncomfortable, but when I go to move, her hand shoots out and grabs my shirt. She looks at me, and I notice her eyes are clouded over with a lustful look that I'm sure matches mine. She grabs onto my neck and pulls me closer to her. _Not that I'm complaining._

I rest my forehead on hers and give her a chaste kiss. Well, it was intended to be chaste. I press my lips to hers and her grip on me tightens. My hands snake their way up to her waist and I press myself harder into her.

She opens her mouth and sucks on my bottom lip and I practically shove my tongue into her mouth. Bella gasps when she feels my um- excitement pushing against her. She moans and pulls away to breathe and I start my assault on her neck. _She tastes so good._

"Please," she moans.

"Please what?" I ask in between kisses.

"Don't stop." She says breathily.

"Are you sure you want this?" I ask, pulling away to stare deep into her eyes.

"Yes, please Edward! I want you." She moans. That's all I needed to hear. I start pulling her off the counter, and her legs tighten around my waist. She squeals and laughs as I lift her completely and start carrying her to the bedroom. And fuck if it isn't the sexiest sound I've ever heard.

She continues kissing me as I maneuver my way through the hallway. I almost drop her when she starts pulling on my hair and scratching my head. _Fuck, that feels so good._

We finally reach our destination and I practically throe her onto the bed and climb on top of her. She uses her legs to pull me to her and our lips meet in the middle. Her tongue caresses mine and I moan. She flips us so she's on top and gets up. I'm about to protest but stop when she smirks and unzips her dress. It falls to the ground and she jumps back on top of me. I'm in awe of her beauty. I sit up with her on my lap and start kissing her again. My hands are drawn to her breasts and I growl in frustration at her bra. I reach around her to unclasp it, but she smacks my hand away.

"You're wearing to many clothes Mr. Cullen." I can't stop my groan of delight when she calls me that. She gets off my lap long enough for me to whip off my shirt and pull down my pants. She pulls off her bra and sits back on my lap, straddling me. My hands massage her bare breasts and she moans in my mouth. The only thing separating us is her thong and my boxers. _Too many fucking layers._

She must be thinking the same thing as me, because she maneuvers off of me and pulls on my boxers.

"Superman Edward, really?" she teases as she throws them across the room. I just smile and rip off her thong. She gasps in surprise.

"Hope you weren't too fond of that."

"So fucking hot." She moans and attacks my lips. I roll us so I'm lying on top of her. "Condom?" she asks and groans when I begin to suck on her neck.

"Top drawer." I feel her shift slightly and reach out for my nightstand. She gets it open and searches around with her hand.

"Aha!" she giggles in triumph and holds out the little foil packet. I take it from her and rip it open. I sit up and slide it on and Bella moans.

"Pleasse Edward." She begs when I line myself up at her entrance. _You don't have to beg Baby._ I think as I slide into her warmth. She moans when I'm fully engulfed and starts moving her hips. "Faster Baby!" she begs and I start moving in and out faster.

"Fuck, you feel so good baby. So fucking tight." I've never felt so good before. Fucking is fucking. But this, this is so much different, so much better.

"God, it feels so good Edward!" she moans out. I start pounding into her even faster and hold her close to my body and kiss her. I feel her tightening and I know she's close.

"Come with me baby." I whisper against her lips.

"Edward!" she screams and stiffens. We both come and I flop down on top of her, completely spent. Her breathing is labored as she uncurls her arms from around my neck. She's smiling at me and I smile back.

I pull out of her heat and toss the used condom into the trashcan near the bed and pull her to my chest.

"Can I stay?" Bella asks timidly, not meeting my eyes. I've never seen her look so insecure.

"Always baby." I tell her truthfully, "You know I want more than just sex, right? I want to know you, date you?" her responding smile is brilliant and she cuddles tightly into my side.

"I want that too," she whispers against my chest.

After a few minutes, her breathing evens out, and she falls asleep curled into my side. _Where she should be._ It just feels so… right.

"My Bella." I whisper to myself and kiss her forehead.

**So what do you think? Like it? Hate it? Constructive criticism is always appreciated :)**

**Thanks for reading!**


	2. Inc

_**What is this?**_** A second chapter to Inked Inc.?**

**Yep, finally sat down and cranked one out… After nearly a year!**

**Hope you enjoy this… I won't lie. It's fluff. Pure fluff and humor. I hope it's sufficient for those of you who reviewed and PM'd me wanting a bit more than the first chapter had to offer.**

**I don't own Twilight, or its characters, but I'm sure having fun with 'em.**

* * *

><p>"What about this one?" I ask quietly as I lightly trace the outline of a swan on her shoulder blade. There's a date under it. <em>July 28, 2004.<em>

"It's my way of remembering my parents." She tells me softly and opens her eyes and granting me access to her beautiful deep chocolate pools. "Emmett has a matching one."

"What happened?"

She takes a deep inhalation of breath. "Hit by a drunk driver." Her eyes become glassy and I can tell she wants to change the subject.

I comply. "And this one?" I ask as I run my fingers down to her lower back. A pink heart nestled in between two black swirly designs on either side.

She snorts and snuggles closer to me, closing her eyes. "What?" I ask, curious by her reaction.

"It's called a tramp stamp." She laughs. This time when she opens her eyes, they're shining in mirth. I raise an eyebrow, begging for an explanation. "It's just a slang term. Allie, Rose, and I got one when we opened our shop."

Huh. Learn something new every day. "It's a very sexy tramp stamp." I tease and roll her on top of me. Her tits are pressed against my chest in the most delicious of ways, and I have to stop myself from tasting. She rolls her head to the side and I catch a peek of ink near her left ear. "Aha. This one's hiding." She giggles as I tuck her hair behind her ear revealing black script. _Love Life._ "Hidden meaning?" I nibble the spot on her skin, making her squirm.

I think I found Bella's _spot_.

"Nah, its pretty self explanatory." She leans her head against mine and I place a chaste kiss on her lips. She nuzzles her head into my neck and I can't stop the smile overtaking my face. I drag my fingers lightly up and down her back and she shivers under my touch.

"Are you cold?" I ask, concerned and make to pull up the blankets higher over us.

"No." I smile and return my ministrations on her skin.

Her even breathing in my ear and steady heartbeat on my chest lulls me; I feel myself starting to drift off.

_Growl._ My eyes snap open and I feel a blush heat my cheeks.

My face cheeks, not my ass. Perv.

"I think you're hungry." Bella tells me bluntly in response to the ferocious noises emitting from my stomach and giggles in my ear.

I groan in frustration as she sits up, straddling my torso. She traces her fingers slowly down my bare chest and looks at me with lust-filled eyes. I feel myself getting hard, and by her smirk I can tell she feels it poking into her leg. She leans down and captures my lips in a slow passionate kiss. My hands slide up her body and latch themselves onto her bare tits. I squeeze them and she moans into my mouth.

_Growl._

God dammit.

Bella smirks and releases my mouth, returning to her sitting position on my stomach. "You just cock-blocked yourself." She teases and slides off of me. My hands fall limply at my sides and I sigh.

I sit up and rub my hands through my hair roughly. Bella's back is to me as she sits up and stretches her hands over her head. Her silky hair is in perfect disarray and I can't help but think about how much I love waking up to her. Just after one night.

I crawl over to her and wrap my arms around her mid-section and rest my head on her shoulder. "Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?"

She smirks and turns her head toward mine. "Better than my car?"

I pretend to ponder for a moment and she smacks my arms away from her playfully. "Yeah, I think so." I tease. She sticks her tongue out and laughs. _She's so sexy_.

"Turn around." She orders. I cock my eyebrow in confusion. She points to her dress lying on the floor a few feet away. "Would you rather I walk in the nude?"

"Yes," I answer without hesitation. She rolls her eyes. I smile cockily and cover my eyes. Satisfied, she gets up and trips over to her dress.

How do I know she tripped? Because, like the creeper that I am, I left a crack in my fingers that I can peer out of.

She bends over, and I feel myself get hard again as I try to suppress the moan at the image of her bare ass as she bends over. _That is a nice ass._

She's picking up her dress when an idea hits me, "Wait!" I tell her and jump over to my closet.

"Hey, I told you not to look!" she scowls and crosses her arms over her chest which just pushes her boobies together and makes them look even more delicious.

After a minute of creepin' on her chest, I return my attention to my cramped closet and start pulling out random shirts. _Aha!_ I pull my high-school football shirt off the hanger and hold it up. _Perfect._

I face Bella and realize she's sitting naked on my bed staring at me. _Why am I not over there?_ As if to remind me I haven't eaten for over ten hours, my stomach grumbles again.

Oh, that's why.

I make my way over to her and hand her the shirt. She purses her lips and inspects it. "It'll do." She tries to be nonchalant, but I can see the happiness in her eyes. I can't help but wonder if she's still waiting for me to kick her out, especially after what she said last night. _I wonder what kind of assholes she's dated._

My stomach rumbles and she giggles. "I'm a go make breakfast." I tell her.

She looks surprised, "You can cook?"

I think for a minute. The last time I cooked was two thanksgivings ago and I managed to catch my mother's kitchen on fire. "Sure." I smile and turn to leave.

"Nice ass, by the way." I look down and realize that I am, in fact, in the nude. I blush and grab my boxers, which must have been thrown pretty hard to land all the way by the door. I slip them on and close the door lightly behind me to give her some privacy.

I pad down the hallway and into the kitchen, managing to only trip once on a library book that probably should have been returned about a year ago. _Shit, I need to do that._

My kitchen is fairly large and unfortunately, fairly empty. I go through cabinet after empty cabinet until I find my junk food stash. _Huh, don't think Bella would be too pleased munching on cheese balls for breakfast._ I close the door in frustration and make my way over to the refrigerator. _Cross your fingers._

"Dammit." Judging by the green fuzzy shit growing on my cheddar cheese, I'd say two months in the fridge is too long. I reach over into the drawer under the seat and feel around for the tongs. When I finally feel the cool metal handles, I yank them out and struggle to undo the safety clasp. _Stupid safety thing. What's someone going to do, poke their eye out?_ I snicker to myself at the image of some dipshit stabbing their eye with salad tongs and pull on the safety ring.

"Oh, fuck!" I scream and throw the tongs across the room, my hands flying to my eye. _Fucking thing stabbed me in the eye!_

I quickly rush over to the sink and run the cool water. I cup my hand and splash some on my face. _Shit that hurts._ I don't even bother looking in a mirror when I'm satisfied that the burning sensation is manageable.

I'm sure I look sexy with my puffy red eye that's swelling to the size of a small island.

I set my jaw in determination and stomp over to where the tongs landed, kicking them against the wall. They immediately snap open on impact and bounce off the wall, hitting me in the shins. "Fuck!" I grab my left leg, holding it close to my body, and bouncing around on my right.

_I have a few choice words for whoever invented those damn things._ You can shove your invention up your ass Mr. Salad Tong.

I take a deep breath and focus on bending down and grabbing the tongs, careful to avoid any further injury. I hold them as far away from my body as possible and take them back over to the fridge. I stick my arm in and grab the moldy bag of cheese between the tongs carefully.

I bite my tongue in concentration and slowly pull the cheese out. I gently turn, keeping my eyes on the cheese, and dispose of it in the trash can. I debate for a moment and drop the tongs in too.

_That's what they get for crippling the man of the house._

I nod once in satisfaction and resume my search for something edible. I spin around and let out a small squeak in surprise.

_That was manly._

Bella's leaning against the wall, wearing my old jersey _might I add_, with quirked eyebrows and a smirk on her face. _God she looks so fuckable in my clothes_. The shirt doesn't even reach her mid-thigh, showing off her mile long legs, and her hair is pulled up into a messy pony-tail.

"You just got your ass kicked by a pair of tongs." She snorts and makes her way over to me.

I scratch the back of my head and watch her approach through my good eye. "You uh, you saw that huh?" I chuckle embarrassedly.

"Kinda hard not to. I must say, you're better than Comedy Central." She teases, "I totally did not see that shin hit coming, I thought the tongs would show mercy on you after giving you a shiner."

"I'm glad I can amuse you," I snap angrily and grab an ice pack from the freezer.

I hear her sign and moments later, she's pressed up against my back with her arms wrapped around my waist. I try to stay mad, but I can feel my anger immediately dissipate at her touch.

"I'm sorry," she places a light kiss on my back. "Are you okay?" I can tell she's trying to be sincere, but a giggle bubbles out and she buries her head against my skin to keep it in. I feel her shaking in silent laughter, and I can't help but join in.

I mean _really_, what are the odds? I could be a fucking millionaire if I had that on tape.

"It kinda feels like someone's shoving an ice pick in my eye." I tell her truthfully.

I feel the loss of Bella as she slides over in front of me. She grabs my arm and pulls it away from my eye. "Edward," she chastises when I struggle. My arm falls limp at my side, and the bright light makes me shut my eye in pain. _Well, try to shut it. It only goes half-way._ With my good eye, I see her face grow pale, and she reaches her hand up to poke it.

"Edward?"

"Huh."

"I think you should go to the doctor." She tells me and pulls her hand away. I panic at the serious look on her face and race over to the mirror in the entry room.

I groan at my reflection. My eye is red and watery and swelled up to the size of a baseball. _I have a fucking baseball on my face!_

"Come on Edward," Bella calls from behind me. "I'm taking you to the doctor." I huff in embarrassment and follow her back to my room. I go over to my closet and pull out some random shit, throwing it on. I run my hands through my hair and turn around, just in time to watch Bella put her dress back on. Her bare back faces me, and I can't resist.

I rest my hands on her waist and kiss the back of her neck softly. "Do you have any idea how tempting you are?" I whisper. She shudders and relaxes into my embrace. I continue my trail of kisses until I reach her ear. I nibble on the end, causing her to moan softly.

"Edward," she groans, "We can't."

"Why not?" I whisper in her ear.

"Because, you need to see a doctor about your eye. It looks like it could get infected."

I stiffen at her words, "What?" I whimper.

"Edward, I poke people for a living, I know when infections are possible," she tells me and adjusts her dress. "Can you zip me up?"

My fingers fumble with the delicate zipper resting on her lower back and gently pull it up, pushing her hair to the side. I hear a sniffle and turn Bella around to face me.

"What's wrong?" I put my hand under her chin and force her to look at me.

"Nothing." She kisses my palm and smiles. She rubs her eyes, no doubt trying to hide the wetness pooling in the corners form me. I saw it. _Did I do something wrong?_

"You sure?"

"Yeah." She grabs her purse and I follow her out of the room. "Ready?"

I smirk and grab her hand. "I was born ready, baby."

A half hour and two BigMac's and shakes later, Bella and I make it to the hospital.

"Hey Lauren," I say to the receptionist in the lobby as we approach the desk.

"Oh, Edward!" she smiles a bit too largely to be sincere, "To what do I owe... the pleasure?" she leans across the counter and crosses her arms, causing her cleavage to spill over her scrubs. _Two days ago, that would have turned me on._ Bella snorts at Lauren's blatant flirting and I grab her hand. Lauren eyes Bella up and down and sneers. "I haven't heard from you in sooo long, Eddie. I'm feeling neglected." She says in an innocent voice, jutting out her bottom lip.

I'm sorry to admit that I actually slept with this plastic slut at last year's charity gala for the hospital. We were both drunk, and I didn't have a date. Lauren did, but I guess that didn't matter at the time.

"I'm here to see my father. Does he have time?"

"Your father works here?" Bella nudges me sharply.

My eyes meet hers, "Yeah, he's a doctor," I tell her, confused as to her reaction.

"You should have told me." She crosses her arms and glares at me.

"Um, why?" I ask, not quite sure what she's getting at.

"Hello! I look like shit! I would have dresses nicer, and… you know." She motions to her back.

_What's she talking about? _"What?"

"Covered up the tats," she tells me, like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Bella-"

"God, you're dad's going to think I'm some kind of whore!"

"Bel-"

"Unless, you were never planning for me to meet your parents!" she inhales in surprise, "You never plan on seeing me again do you?" she pulls her hand from mine. "Oh my god, do I never learn?"

"Bella!"

"Well I'm sorry, Mr. Cullen," she sneers and starts to back away. "I don't do one night stands. I've learned my lesson."

"Bella!" I grab her hand and force her to stay with me. "First off, I'd like to tell you how beautiful you are. You could be meeting the Queen and still look classy." She rolls her eyes, "Second off, my dad is not going to think you're a whore. Anyone who says you are can say hello to my fist of fury," she snorts and stops struggling against me. "Third off, I don't do one night stands… uh, anymore," I trail off awkwardly. "And, I plan on seeing you everyday if you'll have me."

Just one day and this beautiful, insecure woman has managed to grasp my heart n a chokehold.

She looks at me for a moment, stunned. "Really?" she raises an eyebrow. I nod and a smile stretches across her face. She throws her arms around my neck and kisses my cheek.

_Forever if you'll have me._

A throat clears behind me, causing Bella to stiffen and let go of me. "Do I get to meet the woman who finally stole my sons' heart?" my dad's cheery voice calls out. I spin around and hear him gasp. "What happened to your face?" he asks in horror.

_Gee, thanks dad._

Bella giggles and I grab her hand, giving it a small squeeze. "Dad, this is Bella." He smiles and comes over to us.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Dr. Cullen." Bella tells him and holds out her hand. He ignores it and pulls her in to a hug.

"None of that Dr. Cullen crap, you make me sound like a dinosaur." Bella giggles. "It's a pleasure to meet you Bella."

"Hey, paws off old man." I joke and smack my dad on the back. Bella blushes and my dad releases her from his bear hug.

"It's good to see you son," he pats my back. "Are you happy to see me too?" I cock my head at his odd question and Bella laughs.

"What?"

"Are you happy to _see_ me_?_ Get it? See me. You can't see!" he joined Bella in her laughter as I stare up at the ceiling. _Why me?_ "You're still planning on coming to your mothers' party on Sunday?" he asks after they calm down a bit.

"Yep."

"Good. I know she misses you." He tells me. "Alright, I'm not too busy this morning so I guess I can _see _you." He giggles childishly and I roll my eyes at his stupid joke and motions for us to follow him to his office.

"I like your dad," Bella whispers to me as we follow him down the hall. I smile and hug her to my side. "I can _see_ why you weren't worried about me meeting him." She laughs at the word _see._

"Nice. Poke fun at the blind guy."

She doubles over in a fit of uncontrollable laughter, "You said '_poke_,'" she snorts, "Like the tongs _poked_ you,"

"Alright, have a seat." Carlisle holds his office door open for us and I sit on the crunchy paper covering the leather chair. Bella leans against the wall and smiles when she sees me watching her.

Carlisle grabs his glasses and stethoscope off his desk and comes over to me. "So, how did this happen?" he motions toward my eye.

"I fell," I lie.

"He stabbed himself in the eye this morning with salad tongs." Bella rats me out and I glare at her.

"Very manly son, I'm proud of you." Carlisle laughs and listens to my heartbeat with his stethoscope. "So, what are you worried about?"

"She made me come." I point to Bella.

She rolls her eyes, "I just wanted to make sure it wasn't going to get infected. I've seen shit like that at work and it ain't pretty."

"No, that's for sure." Carlisle pulls my eye open and shines a light in it. "So what do you do Bella?"

Out of my good eye I see Bella stiffen. "Oh," she hesitates. "I'm… an artist." My dad gets a magnified light tool and inspects my eye closely.

"That's great. What kind of art?"

"Um, ink."

He looks over at her curiously, "Ink?"

"She's a tattoo artist, dad."

My dad's movement stops. "Oh really?" Bella looks down, embarrassed, and nods. Why is she embarrassed about what she does? "That's wonderful! I was actually thinking about getting a tattoo. My wife's birthday is in two days, and I wanted to dedicate a chunk of my skin to her. You know how ladies love that romantic stuff."

"Psh, you just want to get into her pants." I joke, ignoring for a moment that we are- in fact- talking about my mother.

"Oh believe me; I don't need help in that department." He wiggles his eyebrows and my hands fly to my ears and I close my eye.

"That's my mom!" I complain, disgusted at the turn of the conversation.

"So, what do you think?" My dad turns his attention back to a stunned Bella.

"Um, sure." She nods and makes her way over to us. "What design were you thinking?"

"I don't know. Something small, I guess." He shrugs. "I'm thinking on my upper arm or back."

"And you want it done in two days?" she quirks her eyebrows. He nods. "I can ink it in an hour or two depending on how large it is, but it can take weeks to heal completely."

"Hmm," Carlisle's eyebrows scrunch up in thought. _Did he forget the growth on my face?_

I clear my throat, but he ignores it. "I'll think about it." He smiles and returns his attention to me. "So, I'm going to give you a prescription for an eye cream that you should rub on it three times a day. It'll help with the pain and swelling. Thankfully you didn't damage your eye, but I still want you to wear this. It'll help it heal faster." He pulls out a black patch from his desk and hands it to me.

"Fuck, no!" I tell him and shake my head.

"Language Edward." He chastises. "Now put the fucking thing on."

"Language, Dad." I mock and grab the eye patch, mumbling under my breath. "Stupid thing." I slid it over my lump and pull the string around my head.

"Here." Bella comes over and ties it at the back and scratched my head. "You look amazing, Edward. I really think you'll start a new trend." She jokes. I laugh and jump up off the chair and grab her around the waist. She squeals and laughs as I pull her back to sit in my lap.

"Bully," she tells me.

"Tease." I shoot back. She smiles sweetly and places a gentle kiss on my lips.

Carlisle clears his throat and Bella's head snaps over to where he is resting on his desk. I feel her blush at the small smile on his face. "Bella, would you mind running to the prescription desk and grabbing Edward medication for me?"

"Of course!" she answers too quickly and jumps off my lap. I bite back a laugh as she stumbles over and grabs the prescription from Carlisle. She blushes and practically sprints out the door to get away. I laugh and shake my head at her antics and turn to my father. He's giving me a strange look and I immediately feel self-conscious about my Black-Beard Pirate patch.

"You look happy."

I raise my eyebrows. "I'm always happy." I tell him. _Except for when I get my ass kicked by a pair of tongs._

"No, I mean _really_ happy." He shakes his head and sets down his clipboard. He comes over to me and grabs my shoulder. "I like her, son."

I smile, "Me too dad."

"Your mother's going to love her." We're both silent as we think about my mother actually approving of someone I bring home. After the Victoria incident last year, my mother thinks me incapable of finding a half-way decent woman. I snort as I remember Mom telling her to 'get her skanky ass out of the house.'

"Don't screw it up." Dad's serious tone brings me out of my memories and back to the present. I nod once in agreement.

"So uh," I clear my throat, "When do I get this thing off?" I make a grand sweeping gesture to the eye-patch currently making my eye sweat. _Do eyes sweat?_

"I don't know son, you may want to make it a part of your everyday fashion." He snorts and shakes his head. "Salad tongs Edward? I thought I raised you to be manlier than that."

I shoot him the stink-eye and look out the window, giving him the silent treatment.

"Will you bring her to your mother's party?"

I send him one last glare for his teasing before letting out a sigh. "I was planning on it."

He nods once. "I think that would be her greatest gift, you know. Seeing you with a decent girl for once."

"Does that mean I don't have to get her a gift?" I laugh as he smacks me over the head with a file folder.

Twenty minutes later, Bella and I leave my dad's office; her with a new customer and me with an eye patch.

Carlisle practically begged her to squeeze him n for an appointment tomorrow morning, and she agreed. I think she's still relieved that he didn't judge her for her profession.

Which reminds me; "Why didn't you want to tell him what you did?"

"What I did?" Her smile drops and our swinging hands stop… well, swinging.

"Your job, Bella."

We walk over to her car slowly as she ponders her response. "I didn't want him to know because… When people find out, they usually think less of me." She rushes out and hits the 'unlock' on her car, jumping into the driver's seat before I can respond.

I huff and struggle to get in without hitting my head or something. It's hard to see with this damn _thing_ over my eye. "Why would he judge you? That isn't him."

She shrugs and pulls out of the parking space. "I didn't know that; and a lot of people do judge, or think less of me."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, a lot of the _relationships_ I've been in have been… let's just say I haven't met many of the parental units in my time."

"What?"

"It's a known fact, Edward. So many people look down on us for what we do." She shrugs and tries to be cool about it, but I can see the hurt shining in her eyes, "Guys don't want to introduce me to their parents."

I slump back in my chair, for once legitly upset with the human race. So she gives people tattoos that they _want_ to have. So what? "You know I'm not like that, right? I would never…" I trail off as she smiles brightly back at me.

"I'm beginning to see that."

We decide to head back to my place; _correction_- I beg Bella to spend the rest of the day with me at my place. She agrees on one condition; we stop at the grocery store. Apparently she's disgusted with the contents- _or lack thereof_- in my refrigerator.

According to her, man cannot live off moldy cheese and potato chips.

I beg to differ.

"For fucks sake, how many brands of orange juice are there?" I exclaim suddenly, making Bella jump beside me. "It's orange juice. You only need _one_ kind."

She snatches the Minute Maid from my hands and puts it back with a drawn out sigh. "You shop by pulp, first. Do you like pulp?"

They make it without pulp? "Um, yes."

She scrunches her nose up, "Really?"

"What?"

She shakes her head, "Nothing. Just a bit nasty, that's all."

"Nasty?" I cock an eyebrow, crossing my arms. "Nasty how?"

She shrugs, a wry smile forming on her perfect pink lips. "I just don't like chunky juice, that's all." She pulls open the glass refrigerator door. "So now, you shop by price. Whatever brand is the cheapest is the one you get."

"But, what if it doesn't taste as good?"

She gives me the stink eye. "Then don't buy it." She turns back to the yogurt section of the aisle, leaving me to my own devices.

Huh. Who knew shopping was so… difficult.

And women wonder why we never volunteer to pick up the groceries. Our luck, we'd buy the wrong kind of something and be in the dog-house all night.

"Um, excuse me." Bella's quiet voice breaks me out of my thoughts. She's tapped a worker-guy stocking shelves on his shoulder to inquire about some kind of Greek yogurt. He's all too happy to help, not even bothering to look for what she needs; choosing instead to watch her cleavage rise and fall in time with her steady breathing.

"It should be right up there." He points to the top shelf behind her "I know we carry it."

Bella huffs and throws open the glass door, muttering about 'assholes' under her breath. She stretches up- being a bit too short to see the shelf- which causes her dress to ride up on her thighs, exposing _way_ more skin than worker-boy's eyes are allowed to see.

"Hey buddy," his tears his eyes away from Bella's legs long enough to send me a wink. Oh, _hell_ no. "Why don't you get your fuckin' eyes off my girlfriend's ass and get back to stocking your shelves." My words may not seem to menacing to an outsider; but it's really all in the eyes. Well, in my case; eye. I give him the universal 'stay the fuck away from her' glare and watch, with satisfaction, as his smile drops and he hurries back down the aisle.

Bella clears her throat and raises a brow when our eyes meet. "My hero." She teases.

"He shouldn't have been looking at you like… that." I defend lamely, feeling oddly embarrassed. Maybe it's because I called her my girlfriend.

Please tell me she didn't hear that.

"So," she saunters toward me, resting her harms around my neck. "I'm your girlfriend, huh?" Yep, she heard it.

_Please, please say yes._ "Well, you know… I just figured."

She waits for me to finish. I don't. "Figured?" she prompts.

"Figured that…" _Ah, fuck it_. "Figured that I want to be your boyfriend, and hoped you felt the same?" I swear my voice just squeaked. Fucking squeaked.

I haven't squeaked since puberty.

"Bella and Edward. Boyfriend and girlfriend." She pretends to ponder it for a moment. She thinks I can't tell she's smiling, but I can. "I think it sounds pretty fucking good."

I lean down and kiss her soundly. I knew she'd say yes, but it's still nice to hear.

"Edward and Bella." I whisper against her lips. "Edella?" I ask, thinking I'm pretty fucking smart for thinking of it. "It could be like our celeb name."

"Um, no."

"Bedella? Bedward? Edwab? Bedellaward?"

She makes a face. "Edward?"

"Yes, Bella?"

"Don't make me hit you."

I grin and kiss her again, my lips lingering on hers for a few seconds longer than one would think acceptable given our current location.

I just asked Bella to be my girlfriend in the refrigerated aisle of a super market. _Smooth_.

"So, uh." I clear my throat, lacing our fingers together and throwing whatever juice is in my hands in our cart. "Bella, as my girlfriend," I have to stop myself from jumping up and down… Bella's my _girlfriend_. "Would you like to go out with me tonight?"

Her responding smile is blinding. "Edward, I would love to."

"God you're perfect." I can't help the words from escaping after watching Bella down another cheeseburger. I'm sure my eyes have taken on a dreamy look as I watch her, occasionally snaking a French fry off her plate.

She blushes and sets down her cheeseburger, taking a gulp of her beer. My girl drinks beer; none of that fruity shit for her. "I'm sorry; you must think I'm such a pig."

_What?_ "Are you joking? Seeing a girl actually eat is fucking _refreshing_."

She giggles and grabs her burger again. "Thank fuck." She moans in appreciation as another bite hits her tongue. "God this is _good_."

If her moaning is any indication… I'd say her food is _orgasmic_. Some of the sounds she's made in the past half-hour have made me- Well, let's just say I can't _wait_ to get her home.

I clear my throat and adjust my pants for the thousandth time. "I can see that."

"I must've worked up an… appetite." She winks at me playfully and runs her shoe-less foot higher up my thigh.

Did I forget to mention she likes to play footsie under the table? Not that I'm complaining.

"And would this appetite of yours only be satiated by _food_?" I inquire, already picturing her panting underneath me. "Because I could help you with that, you know."

She gives me a secretive smile. "How exactly would you _satiate_ my appetite, Mr. Cullen?"

"Stay the night with me." I tell her seriously, all flirting aside. "Please?" No, I'm not above begging.

Or breaking out the Cullen pout.

I think the pout gets her, because she agrees, a content smirk on her face.

I nod once, satisfied. "I promise, I'll make it worth your while." A beautiful blush paints across her cheeks as she chokes back the rest of her beer and calls out for the waitress.

Paying quickly with cash, I grab her hand and pull her out of the restaurant. We practically sprint to her Vanquish, and I don't even try to convince her to let me drive. That's how badly I want us back at my place.

Well, that and I don't think she'd let me drive her baby whilst wearing an eye-patch.

Fuck… we're gonna have sex while I'm wearing an eye-patch?

"Um, Bella?" I clear my throat, watching her carefully out of the corner of my… eye.

We stop at a red light and she turns to me, seeming nervous at my tone. "Edward? Are you okay?"

"Does this- uh." I motion toward my eye. "You know… turn you off? 'Cuz I can take it off when we- do it." My eyes widen at my implications. "_If_ we're gonna do it. I mean, we don't have to, if you don't want to. Just because we're dating, I don't like, expect that of you. I really, _really_ like you, Bella. I don't want to chase you away after the first day. If you think this is moving too fast-"

I manage to babble the whole way back to my apartment. The. Whole. Way.

She finally shuts off the engine in front of my place and cuts off my incessant ramblings with a heated kiss. "I really, _really_ like you too, Edward." Kiss. "I don't think this is moving too fast… what I feel for you-" Kiss, "I can't explain it. I've-"

"Never felt this way?" I finish. She nods and leans in for another scorching kiss. "Me either."

Kiss. "I'm glad I'm not alone." She mumbles against my lips. "Now, I believe you promised to take care of my appetite." We both chuckle and stumble over to the elevator, not taking our hands- or eyes- off each other.

To my satisfaction, the eye patch doesn't seem to be too much of a turn off for her.

"Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?" I whisper in the dim light of my apartment once we manage to get ourselves in.

"You _may_ have mentioned it." She teases, pulling off her light jacket.

As much as I love the way her dark-wash jeans and red shirt cling to her curves, I love the way they look even _more_ scattered haphazardly around my living room.

My eyes- er… eye- cracks open, squinting in the light streaming in through the open windows. I can't stop the grin from spreading across my face as memories from last night come flooding back into the forefront of my mind.

Soft, delicate skin pressed up against me. Low moans and quiet screams. Sweaty skin and silky hair.

Bella.

Slightly perturbed that she isn't cuddled up with me, I roll over, my arm darting out and searching the other side of the bed for her warm body.

I find nothing warm. Only cold sheets and the faint smell of her shampoo on the pillows.

Wait, what?

I shoot up in bed, searching around for any sign that she's still in the room.

Nothing.

Nothing except for a folded up piece of paper crushed under the weight of my arm. She wouldn't just… leave, would she?

No, she couldn't. She feels something for me too; said it herself last night. She wouldn't leave.

I tear open the folded note, and my mind is instantly put to ease.

_Edward,_

_I didn't have the heart to wake you, you looked so peaceful curled up and drooling all over yourself.  
>Just kidding. Maybe.<br>I'll be at the shop all day; I have appointments lined up from dusk 'till dawn- starting with your dad in about an hour.  
>Just FYI, in case you have an inkling to come and visit me.<br>XOXO  
>Yours always,<br>Bella _

I grin like a teenage girl with her first crush and jump in the shower, fully intending to bring Bella some breakfast at the shop. Unfortunately, it's already after ten- _Holy shit! I slept until ten…_ And decide on bringing her lunch instead. That gives me two hours to come up with a plan to blow her socks off. A plan to shoe her that she means more to me than a few nights in bed.

A plan to show her how much I've come to care about her in the past two days.

_Flowers? _Too overdone.

_A stuffed animal, maybe._ What is she, four?

_A homemade lunch_- who am I kidding, I can't cook.

I drive around town aimlessly as I mull over my options. Why the hell is this so hard? Think, Cullen. _If you were Bella, what would make you weak in the knees?_

I stifle a snort. Oh, I made her weak in the knees alright…

I'm stopped at a stoplight, staring up at the sky when it hits me what a nice day it is. And then it _really_ hits me.

A fucking picnic!

It's brilliant.

My brilliant idea? Not so brilliant after all. Well, not once the little tiny _friendly_ clouds turned into _stormers_, and the sun decided to take its leave.

And yet, _here_ I stand in front of Inked Inc- brand new wicker basket and checkered blanket in hand.

Along with flowers and a teddy-bear. You know, just so I'm sure to cover all the bases.

"Um, hi." I step up to the front desk awkwardly, vaguely remembering the blonde girl sitting there from two nights ago. Rosa something or other. She glances up, her head tilting to the side, obviously trying to place me. Either that or wondering why the hell there's a one-eyed freak holding a handful of dripping flowers and a sopping wet teddy bear in the lobby of her shop. I clear my throat. "Is Bella here?"

Oh her mouth forms a small 'o' of understanding and she smiles. "You must be Edward?"

"That's me." I nod, peering around the counter to try and spot Bella.

"She's with a customer, but I'll let her know you're here." She sends me a sly wink and heads into the back. I decide to make myself comfortable and find a couch to occupy for the time being.

"Bella's almost done." Blondie tells me, taking the couch across from mine. "I'm Rose, by the way. I think we met briefly the other night." She holds out her hand for a shake. It's then that I notice her sleeve of ink peeking out from under her tight long-sleeve.

We shake and sit in mild-awkwardness for all of two minutes. I know because I was staring at the clock.

Rose clears her throat. "So," she motions towards my basket. "Nice day for a picnic, I see." She smirks.

I chuckle, not quite sure if she's teasing or mocking me. "It's the thought that counts, right?"

She nods, narrowing her eyes. "Be careful, Edward."

"Excuse me?"

"Bella's been known to attract a _lot_ of assholes. I'd hate to have to brand you as one of them."

I feel a sense of respect for Rose, knowing Bella has someone looking after her. "I'm not like that. She mentioned a few of the guys she's dated in the past- how they didn't approve of what she did for a living. I swear I would never-"

She holds up a hand, a small smile in place. "I know. Believe me; I grilled Emmie about you last night."

_Emmie? _I'll never let him live that down. Not as long as I live.

"If I thought you were shady," she continues. "You'd be missing that _other_ eye as well."

It takes Bella less than ten minutes to finish up with her customer. All ten of those minutes were spent, on my part, receiving warning glances from a one Miss Rosalie Hale. I practically screamed in joy when Bella's lips met my own- happy to have her in my arms again, but also happy for an excuse to be away from Rose.

"You didn't have to go to all this trouble." Bella says, after thanking me for the hundredth time. She squeezes her bear tightly, unconcerned that it's probably leaving a wet spot on her shirt.

"Bella," I tsk, "It's no trouble. Honestly."

"I'm sorry, it's just… No one's ever done anything like this for me before."

She resumes her position, leaning against my stomach as I lean against the wall outside Inked. We sit, huddled up against the cold, snacking on our sandwiches and fruit. Store-bought, of course. "Well, then that's their loss." I tell her honestly; absolutely puzzled that no one's snatched her up yet.

"Thank you," She whispers, kissing my chin. "That was the last time, I swear." She laughs. The rain starts pouring down heavier now, and the wind sweeps in, blowing away any sense of warmth we had. "God it's cold." She shivers against me.

"We should go back inside. We can take a rain-check- no pun intended- on this whole picnic thing." She agrees, and together we pack up out half-eaten food and drinks and head back into the shop.

"Hang on," She stops me before going inside. "Come with me." She links our fingers together and pulls us towards the shop next door to Inked. "I have an idea." We enter a floral smelling shop filled with various gardening tools- shovels, soil, pots, anything you would need to garden.

"Mrs. Cope?" Bella calls out over the ding of the bell hanging on the door. "Mrs. Cope?"

"Bella, dear. Is that you?" A portly woman older woman with graying hair and thick glasses hobbles out from one of the aisle and pulls Bella in for a hug. "How are you, sweetheart? I haven't seen you in such a while."

"I'm ell, Mrs. Cope." Bella smiles indulgently. "This is Edward, my boyfriend." She tugs me closer to her.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Cope." I nod toward her, still not quite sure why we're here.

"Well, isn't he just a handsome young thing." Mrs. Cope winks at Bella. "Boy, if I were forty years younger…" She trails off, her stare making me slightly uncomfortable.

Bella clears her throat, trying to hold back a laugh. "Mrs. Cope, I was wondering if we could borrow your rooftop for a few minutes."

Mrs. Cope looks down at the basket in my hands and smiles knowingly, "Of course, dear, you know you never have to ask." She squeezes Bella's shoulder and hands her a ring of keys. "You take as much time as you'd like." Another customer comes into the shop seconds later, pulling Mrs. Cope's attention away from us. But not before one last wink in my general direction.

"Was that as awkward for you as it was for me?"

Bella laughs and leads me around back of the shop. "Shelly's harmless. Just a flirt." We trek up a narrow flight of stairs and Bella fiddles with the keys in the locked door at the top.

I kiss the top of her head, not being able to stop myself. "I like you introducing me as your boyfriend." Her hands still as the keys almost fall out of her hands. I doubt she even knew that's what she called me to Shelly.

I hear rather than see the smile on her face, "I like it too." She finally gets the door unlocked and throws it open with a quiet 'ta-da.'

The space before me can be described as nothing less than paradise. It's like a mini-park; two stories above the ground on a rooftop. There's grass- I'm assuming its fake- dotted with a few benches here and there. Potted plants hang from the glass ceiling, and sit on little stepping stones in the grass.

"This is amazing." I manage to tell Bella, still in awe at the space.

"Shelly's husband had it built for her before he died a few years ago. This is her own little chunk of paradise; but she lets the girls and I come up here whenever we want. I thought it would be kind of nice. Like a picnic- but with heating." She smiles.

I set out our blanket and take a seat, offering my hand to help her sit. Together we watch as a bolt of lightning strikes somewhere in the distance, followed by the quiet rumbling of thunder. The rain pounds on the glass dome above us, creating a peaceful and calming sound.

"I love it up here." She confesses. "Rose, Alice, and I talked about building one last summer… we just never got around to it."

"This is great. So peaceful."

"It's even better on sunny days. So beautiful." I can't help but watch her eyes light up as they sweep across the roof.

"Yes, you are."

Her nose scrunches up adorably. "That was cheesy."

"Yes, it was." I agree, joining in on her laughter. "How's your day been, beautiful?" I rest my chin lightly on her head as she leans back against me. "How was my dad?"

"I see where you get your charm." She snorts. "He's great, Edward. You're so lucky to have him." I detect a hint of sadness laced with her cheery façade. "He reminds me so much of Charlie. My dad." She adds.

"He must have been a great guy." I comment, not quite sure how _what_ to say.

"He really was. I miss him sometimes- _all_ the time, actually." She shakes her head. "I just hope he's proud of me; wherever he is."

"Hey," I adjust us so I'm kneeling in front of her. "I never had the chance to meet him; but I _know_ he's looking down at you right now, _so proud_ of you. How could he not be? You are the sweetest, kindest, and most beautiful woman I've ever met. And I'm the luckiest guy in the world to be able to call you mine."

"Edward," her hand rest against my cheek, her eyes glassy. "Thank you." She whispers, almost inaudibly. "Thank you for being you."

"I'll always be here for you, beautiful girl." I kiss her forehead chastely, as if to press my words into her head. "Always."

A bolt of thunder lights up the room, quite frankly scaring the shit out of me. The lights flicker out a moment later followed by the loudest thunder I've ever had the displeasure of hearing.

Bella laughs as I cower into her side.

"Edward." She wraps her arms around me.

"I fucking hate thunder." I grumble.

"Well, I'm here for you." Even in the darkness, I can see her brilliant smile. "I'm _always_ here for you." With those last few words, our sullen and serious mood is morphed into that of teasing and… much to my delight- cuddling.

The electricity has gone completely out, the only source of light coming from the dark and stormy outside. It's pure heaven; cuddled up here with the girl of my dreams, talking and laughing about stupid little things in the dark in a rooftop greenhouse.

Pure heaven, I tell you.

**So, I'm marking this story as complete… Whether I'm finished with it or not- well, only time will tell. As some of you may have noticed, it took me about a year to finally get a follow-up chapter written and posted. I **_**really**_** need to focus on my real-life right now, so I can't promise any future chapters. I'll do my best, though, because I really like this Edward and Bella.**

**Hope this second chappie satisfied those of you wanting more!**

**Check out my new story ****Sweet Treats**** before ya' go :) **


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